Peer evaluation: design and implementation of the peer evaluation format

The following study examined the feasibility of using peer evaluation at a behavioral health center for assessing employee attitudes regarding the company’s appraisal process. A total of 30 subjects, both male and female, were chosen from a single department to pilot the peer evaluation. Subjects were surveyed in order to assess attitudes toward the process prior to participation. An outside corporation was chosen to assist in the selection of peer evaluation questions as well as compiling final ratings of each participant. A post peer evaluation survey assessed attitudes upon completion of the peer evaluation. Responses were averaged and percentages analyzed to determine whether participants were pleased with the peer evaluation process. Prior to participating in peer evaluation, only 17 % of respondents rated their attitude toward peer evaluation as fair; meaning that they felt peer evaluation was a good addition to the current evaluation process. After completing the peer evaluation, 23.5 % of survey respondents rated the process as fair

Surface reflection hyperthermal neutral stream source

A novel source of hyperthermal (1-30 eV) reactive neutrals based on the surface-reflection-neutralization technique is described. This source is potentially capable of minimizing the charge-induced damage associated with plasma based semiconductor processing steps. The goal of this thesis is to investigate the issues involved in scale-up of this technology for processing of 8{dollar}\sp{lcub}\prime\prime{rcub}{dollar} diameter wafers used today in the semiconductor industry. This includes modeling the plasma ion source and trajectory simulations of the reflected neutral flux. A prototype source was constructed for experimental verification of the plasma model.;An inductively coupled plasma (ICP) source is used to provide a source of reactive ions. These ions are neutralized and reflected through interaction with a biased metal plate. These reflected neutrals are directed at a wafer to be etched (for feature delineation) or cleaned (removal of etch residue).;The plasma source is modeled with a global (volume averaged) power deposition model to determine plasma densities at the reflector plate. The modeled values are compared to measurements of a prototype neutral stream source. Plasma parameter measurements are carried out using Langmuir single probes. It is found that the plasma densities in the upstream plasma source and at the reflector plate agree well (within 10%) with the model.;Several models of reflected neutral trajectories are used to determine the final flux characteristics at the wafer. 2-D and 3-D ray trace trajectory models were used, as well as a full 3-D Monte Carlo treatment. It is found that in geometry considered in this work, background pressure plays a key role in delivering hyperthermal neutrals to the wafer. Energy and angular distributions are altered severely as the neutrals traverse the background gas and plasma

A CLARINETIST'S GUIDE TO THE AUDITION PROCESS AND LITERATURE FOR THE PREMIER UNITED STATES SERVICE BANDS

The eight premier United States service bands provide numerous job opportunities for the prospective professional musician and offer financial stability, job security, and an outlet to perform at a superior level in a variety of settings. Although many published resources exist to prepare candidates for orchestral auditions, few published resources address the audition process and literature for the premier U.S. service bands. This study examines the audition process at these organizations through written correspondence with past and present audition coordinators. It addresses topics such as the system of rounds, the personnel that comprise committees, literature selection criteria, desirable traits of candidates, the role of sight-reading in the audition, and the relationship of each band's process to its mission. In order to compile a list of significant wind literature including clarinet, a written survey was distributed to a cross-section of conductors and clarinetists from universities and military bands. The survey requested identification of five to ten works from three categories including original works, marches, and transcriptions of orchestral music deemed essential for audition preparation for these bands. Fifteen of the most frequently identified works are excerpted, and accompanied by a technical and stylistic discussion. Appendices include sample audition lists from 2005-2010 and a discography of premier U.S. service band recordings of excerpted literature. These resources should aid candidates in preparing for these auditions more comprehensively than previously possible, while reducing the amount of time required to locate such reference materials

The ecclesiology of N. N. Afanasev, patristic ressourcement and ecumenical prospect in the Russian tradition

Chapter I traces the theological background of Afanasev's work in the Russian tradition with its three chief contributants to his thought: Scholasticism, the Slavophile movement, and the early twentieth century religious renaissance. Chapter II outlines his life against the ecclesiastical background of its three main stages: Russia, Serbia, France. Chapter III offers an analytical exposd of his principal published ecclesiological writings, considered in seven blocks forming a broadly chronological sequence. Chapter IV looks at Afanasev's ecclesiology as an exercise in patristic ressourcement, evaluating his use of a number of Church fathers and early ecclesiastical writers. Chapter V draws out the ecumenical potentialities of his work for the reconciling of Orthodox and Catholic traditions in terms of four themes: the concept of 'eucharistic ecclesiology'; the inter-relation of universal and particular in the being of the Church; the relationship of doctrinal magisterium to popular reception; the role of the Roman church and bishop in the koinonla of the churches. Appendices offer (i) a survey of Afanasev's most notable confreres in the Russian ecclesiology of his time, with a view to determining the degree of representativeness his ideas can claim for his own tradition; (ii) a 'placing' of Afanasev within a taxonomy of ecclesiologies, and (iii) an apparatus of notes for the foregoing

Optimizing Guideline-Recommended Antibiotic Doses for Pediatric Infective Endocarditis

The American Heart Association recently published an updated scientific statement on the management of infective endocarditis in childhood. The recommendations included for vancomycin, aminoglycoside, and β-lactam dosing and monitoring are based primarily on expert opinion and do not consider available evidence for dose optimization based on pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic principles in pediatric patients. This is concerning because even when clinically necessary, some practitioners may be hesitant to deviate from guideline-recommended doses. In this perspective, we highlight potential areas for improvement in the statement-recommended doses and summarize evidence supporting antibiotic dosing optimization. The addition of a pediatric clinical pharmacist with expertise in antibiotic dosing to the panel would be beneficial for future updates

The Role of CCUS in North America Energy System Decarbonization

One of the key energy technologies that can significantly reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions across industrial processes and power generation is carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS). We explore different scenarios of North America long-term energy system development with respect to CCUS technologies and, particularly, CO2-enhanced oil recovery (EOR)

Transformational Solar Array Option I Final Report

This report summarizes the work performed under NASA contract NNC16CA19C from May 2, 2017 through April 2, 2018. This work is directed toward meeting the goals of the associated NASA NRA and, of course, the requirements of the contract. In brief, the goals are: (1) Over 47% beginning of life cell efficiency at 5 AU and -125 C (2) Over 32% end of life efficiency at the blanket level at 50 W m-2, -125 C and 4E15 1 MeV e cm-2 (3) Over 8 W kg-1 at EOL for the entire array including structure, deployment, and pointing mechanisms using beginning of life performance. (4) A stowed packaging density of greater than 66 kW m-3 (5) An ability to survive launch and numerous deploy retract cycles without degradation (6) An output higher than 300 V (7) An ability to operate in a plasma generated by xenon thrusters, typically 1E8 cm-3 ions with an average energy of 2 eV (8) A design compatible with electrostatic and magnetic cleanliness (9) Record breaking inverted metamorphic (IMM) 6 junction solar cells (10) IMM solar cells that have no anomalous flat spot behavior at low irradiance and low temperature (11) A mock-up production line for the low-cost manufacture of spacecraft blanket arrays. The Option I phase of the project continued efforts, started in the base-phase, to eliminate or reduce to very low levels the flat spots that reduce power to an unacceptable value in a significant percentage of cells and to reduce outgassing contamination of the concentrators to acceptable levels. Option I adds tasks to increase the efficiency of IMM cells from those produced in the Base Phase, to eliminate delamination of the coatings that were present in previous versions of the concentrator mirrors, to evaluate pressure sensitive adhesive as a method of fixing solar cell assemblies to blankets, to design a magnetically clean brake for ROSA, to test the robustness of a sample blanket in deploy and retract, to test for the adequate performance of a blanket in vibration and thermal environments, and to define the capital equipment needed to optimize production of the Transformational Array. 5 Work for this Final Report showed that the greatest likely improvement in the solar cells would be by emphasizing the effort for the IMM4 solar cells and stopping work on other IMM cells. For this phase, the solar cell work was primarily on the IMM4 cells with little work on IMM5 and none on IMM6 cells

Irrigation system

A gravity irrigation system includes a distribution piping having apertures to distribute water to a field, and a valve located upstream of the distribution piping. The valve limits a pressure of the water being delivered to the distribution piping. The system also includes a sump to receive the water at a lowest elevation of the field, a depth sensor disposed within the sump, and a return pump disposed at least partially within the sump to move the water to an elevated portion of the field. The system also includes a motor to drive the return pump, and a power source coupled to a variable frequency drive that powers the motor and controls a motor speed proportionately to an indication of the depth sensor. The system also includes a transfer piping to bring the water from the return pump to a check valve and to the distribution piping

Does heat or cold work better for acute muscle strain?

Cryotherapy is better than heat for treating acute muscle strain (strength of recommendation [SOR]: C, consensus, usual practice, and expert opinion). Insufficient patient-oriented evidence exists regarding use of heat to treat acute soft-tissue injuries

Permutation

This is a story of two spatial designers: The Mathematician and the Architect. In the four dimensional space of a Mathematician, most physical realities must be ignored in order for the space to remain pure. The visual, one of the most powerful tools of the Architect, can coexist within the Mathematician's four dimensional world without affecting its purity. However, the Architect must ignore his/her physical realities, such as gravity, mass, and human scale. The Mathematician establishes the rules within which the Architect must operate. The Architect manipulates form through a structure that is defined by the Mathematician. The Architect explores spatial qualities through the tools that the Mathematician gives him/her. The Architect tries to understand the meaning of the form that both of them have created. He/she pushes the form in order for it to achieve spatial qualities. Together, the Mathematician and the Architect try to understand the meaning of such spatial qualifiers as: big/small, wide/narrow, inside/outside, and light/dark. The Architect starts to understand why spaces achieve these qualities in his/her physical world